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morrigirlSo, MySpace is getting sued AGAIN by a group of parents whose daughters were sexually abused by men they met off the site.
Dear Deluded Parents Behind the MySpace Lawsuit,
A couple of suggestions:
1) Teach your children not to talk to strangers. I don't know about you, but when I was a kid that message was pounded into my brain no less than six or seven times a day. Children must be TAUGHT to be wary of strangers wherever they encounter them. If you do not take the time to do that, you can expect them to do stupid shit like reveal personal information to, or even go as far as to walk off hand in hand with the wrong person. It is not the Responsibility of MySpace to instruct your children on how to utilize their common sense. It's yours.
2) Make an effort to know where your children are at all times. Meet their friends, introduce yourselves to the parents of those friends, make a point to know where they like to hang out, what activities they engage in while out of your house. True, not even the most diligent parents can keep tabs on their kids at all times, but you MUST make a concerted effort to do so. It should be mentioned there is a fine line between being informed and being nosy. Parents who have already taken the time to teach their kids common sense will have less to fear when their children leave the house then parents who have raised their children with the belief that society will naturally shelter them from harm, mainly because children who know what dangers await them are more aware of how they can protect themselves. It is not the responsibility of MySpace or society at large to keep your child safe. Though society will often enact measures that will make your child's life safer, it is not their responsibility to do so. Say that over and over to yourself until it sinks in. Then remind yourself that it's your responsibility to keep your child safe.
3) Realize that the dangers your child encounters on the internet are the same dangers your child encounters in the real world. They could just as easily meet some strange person in the street/in a store/at a party who, having somehow gained their trust, convince them to come over to his home and then rape/beat/kill the heck out of them. That is why suggestions 1 and 2 should be extended to include internet interactions. Thousands of children are harmed by strangers every year, but you don't see parents suing the cities or states in which such travesties occured. You know why? Because it is not the state/city/store/organization's fault it happened.
No Love,
Me
In related news, I'm going to sue the makers of the big mahogony table in my mother's living room for all the times I've stubbed my toe on it's massive legs over the years.
Dear Deluded Parents Behind the MySpace Lawsuit,
A couple of suggestions:
1) Teach your children not to talk to strangers. I don't know about you, but when I was a kid that message was pounded into my brain no less than six or seven times a day. Children must be TAUGHT to be wary of strangers wherever they encounter them. If you do not take the time to do that, you can expect them to do stupid shit like reveal personal information to, or even go as far as to walk off hand in hand with the wrong person. It is not the Responsibility of MySpace to instruct your children on how to utilize their common sense. It's yours.
2) Make an effort to know where your children are at all times. Meet their friends, introduce yourselves to the parents of those friends, make a point to know where they like to hang out, what activities they engage in while out of your house. True, not even the most diligent parents can keep tabs on their kids at all times, but you MUST make a concerted effort to do so. It should be mentioned there is a fine line between being informed and being nosy. Parents who have already taken the time to teach their kids common sense will have less to fear when their children leave the house then parents who have raised their children with the belief that society will naturally shelter them from harm, mainly because children who know what dangers await them are more aware of how they can protect themselves. It is not the responsibility of MySpace or society at large to keep your child safe. Though society will often enact measures that will make your child's life safer, it is not their responsibility to do so. Say that over and over to yourself until it sinks in. Then remind yourself that it's your responsibility to keep your child safe.
3) Realize that the dangers your child encounters on the internet are the same dangers your child encounters in the real world. They could just as easily meet some strange person in the street/in a store/at a party who, having somehow gained their trust, convince them to come over to his home and then rape/beat/kill the heck out of them. That is why suggestions 1 and 2 should be extended to include internet interactions. Thousands of children are harmed by strangers every year, but you don't see parents suing the cities or states in which such travesties occured. You know why? Because it is not the state/city/store/organization's fault it happened.
No Love,
Me
In related news, I'm going to sue the makers of the big mahogony table in my mother's living room for all the times I've stubbed my toe on it's massive legs over the years.
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no subject
Date: 2007-01-19 11:07 pm (UTC)It's not like MySpace has the means to do background checks on everyone who gets a profile. The parents should have been monitoring their kids more closely in the first place...sounds to me like they just don't want to take responsibility for not paying attention to their kids.
~Abby~
no subject
Date: 2007-01-21 08:49 pm (UTC)